Hayden keeps his cool to take title after Rossi runs aground

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The American Nicky Hayden won the MotoGP world championship on a bizarre afternoon in the Spanish sunshine yesterday. Valentino Rossi appeared to have his eighth world title in his lap when he threw it all away as his Camel Yamaha went skittling into the gravel on only the fifth lap in the 17th and final round. The 129,000 crowd around this 2.486-mile track gasped in disbelief as their favourite lost the eight-point lead that he had carried into the race.

But with the grit that has become a hallmark of his career, the 27-year-old Italian picked up his bike and restarted in 20th and last place. He knew that if Hayden also fell - and anything was possible on this track where speeds reach 195mph- he could still retain the title that he has held for five consecutive years. But Hayden held his nerve and eased his Repsol Honda back from a battle for the lead between the two Marlboro Ducati riders, Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi.

Monitoring Rossi's progress through the field from the pit signals held out by his crew, Hayden realised that his rival lacked the speed to reach the eighth place that would have given him the title.
Hayden's championship win brought to a close one of the most volatile seasons in the 57-year history of grand prix racing. Rossi suffered crashes and machine failures in the early part of the year and in the second half it was Hayden's turn, including the fiasco in which he was knocked out of the Portuguese round by his team-mate, Dani Pedrosa.
Critics claimed that Hayden was unable to win races and lacked on-track aggression against Rossi. But the Kentucky Kid maintained his self-belief. "You just don't give up," he said. "It's 17 rounds and you just do your best every Sunday. Dreams do come true, that's all I can say. I've wanted to be world champion all my life, and I'm just really proud."
He said of Rossi: "He is a great champion, he came here with the best chance of being world champion again . . . but it was his turn to fall, like I did in Portugal. I'm not happy it should happen like this, but no one is safe from accidents, they are part of motorcycle racing."
Hayden had qualified for only the second row of the grid, a tough handicap on a sinuous circuit, where overtaking is difficult. But on the first lap he barged past Rossi and swept into second place. "I committed myself to going to the front on the first lap or two," he said. "I got on the dirt at one time but I just wanted to get to the front and see what would happen.
"My bike felt fast and it would have been great to battle with Troy. But I thought, 'Let's just get the job done and close this championship down.' So I settled for third."
Rossi admitted: "My biggest mistake today was the start. Starting is not one of the best points in my career and today I felt that I needed to get to the first corner in at least third place. But the red light stayed on a second more than is normal, and when I released the clutch I wheelied and lost time. From that moment it was difficult. My water temperature went to 120 degrees and I lost power on the straight. I pushed a little too much and I made the mistake in the corner." Bayliss claimed the race win, and Capirossi's second place gave him third position in the championship, from the Honda riders, Marco Melandri and Pedrosa. Kenny Roberts Jr's eighth position gave the British-based Team KR squad sixth place in the championship in their first year with Honda engines.
 
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